The present invention contemplates a new and improved shim structure of the type described above which provides the installer an enhanced utility of use, and primarily comprises a shim tool having a flat mounting plate portion and a pair of attached identical co-acting wedges.
It is among the objects of this invention to provide a system by which a prefabricated door or window unit may be accurately set within a rough framed opening in a building wall or partition. Disclosed by the applicant to the PTO on Mar. 25, 1998 in a package submitted wider the Disclosure Document Program, Ser. No. 434,748 it is a primary object of die present invention to overcome deficiencies in present construction techniques and the prior art methods of providing door and window shim structures by now furnishing a two part shim system to be used on prefabricated door and window casings and the like, and the shim system is permanently anchored to the door or window casing at the factory and is readily nailable through along the entire length, to support and anchor the door or window casing upon installation at the building.
The invention provides for the application of a two-piece double wedge shim structure to the prefabricated door or window jamb. The two-piece adjustable shim includes a base member and a slide member. The base member is preferably formed of a flat piece of plastic wood composite approximately 1/16 inch thick, and the base member has an integral wedge permanently mounted to it. The slide member is also preferably formed of plastic wood composite, and is also wedge shaped and is slideably interlocked and installed parallel atop the wedge portion of tie base member. Each wedge member is the same general shape as the other. Each wedge member presents a tapered slope part to co-act and mate with the opposed member to provide an expandable shim which will allow for the adjustment necessary to install the door or window unit correctly.
This invention allows for infinite adjustment within the size limits of the co-acting member wedges. The invention is an improved tool which can be used with conventional construction methods, without modifying door or window installation technique.
The principal object of the invention is to provide a method by which a prefabricated door or window frame can be accurately and rapidly positioned in a rough opening within a building wall.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved method for accurately setting prefabricated doors or windows within a rough opening, which will provide centering and insure that the prefabricated unit placed therein will be solidly secured and free from binding at all points within the frame.
A further object of the invention is to provide an improved and simplified prefabricated door or window unit, which is enabled to be rapidly and correctly installed by an ordinary craftsman, at reduced labor and material cost.
Another object of the invention is to provide for a prefabricated door or window unit in which the double co-acting shim member is factory installed upon the prefabricated door or window casing.
It will be appreciated that various materials may be used for the shim structure, such as plastic wood composite, plastic, or wood, or the like.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention are achieved by the unique design and device of the present invention which resides in the permanent at factory application of a vertically mounted two-piece double wedge shim structure to the prefabricated door or window jamb which utilizes generally identical shim elements.
These, together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which: